UH Manoa alumnus Richard Parsons to be featured on PBS Hawaii program

UH Mānoa alumnus Richard Parsonsóchairman of the board of Citigroup, economic advisor to five American Presidents, and a business leader with an established reputation for leading financially troubled companies out of crisisówill be featured this month on two episodes of "Long Story Short with Leslie Wilcox" on PBS Hawaiʻi.

The first half-hour of the two-part conversation will debut on Tuesday, June 23, at 7:30 p.m. Parsons talks about his college life at UH Mānoa in the 1960s, including playing basketball for storied Coach Red Rocha.

Part two of Parsons‘ "Long Story Short" appearance will air the following week on Tuesday, June 30, also at 7:30 p.m. Parsons recounts his first step from law into the financial sector, butting heads with Steve Case at Time Warner, and being recruited to rescue the beleaguered financial giant known as Citigroup.

Parsons returned to Honolulu and UH Mānoa in April to serve as the 2009 Dan and Maggie Inouye Distinguished Chair in Democratic Ideals. During that week, he gave a well-attended public lecture at Kennedy Theatre, and spoke to students and faculty members at various seminars on campus.

Parsons, who majored in history at UH Mānoa, was awarded a UH Distinguished Alumni Award in 1997 and a UH Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters in 2003.